Update 0.998 is out! - Critical fixes and a word about VR

The 0.998 update is mainly about fixing issues and continuing to iterate the game towards its first major milestone, the 1.0 update. It will mainly fix some blocking issues and critical issues reported lately.

Note: If you are experiencing issues with this update, you can always revert to an earlier build using the Steam Betas Tab.

A word about VR
A few patches ago the old Virtual Reality (VR) implementation was moved to a dedicated branch as Unity deprecated the VR API that my old VR implementation was based on (preventing me to update the game to the latest and most modern version of Unity). While VR as a main focus is still a post 1.0 feature, I wanted to take this opportunity to speak more about its future in Reentry.

The plan for VR is to start testing the basics of a new VR rendering framework, and iterate on it as I get feedback from the community. I want to first of all test the core logic such as device recognition, rendering and basic interactions. I will do this in the Mercury program, and use this as the playground to learn as much as possible about device detection and basic rendering using the new API.

I'm happy to share that this approach starts today with this update. The beginning of the new VR-implementation has now become an alpha-feature that you can toggle on from Main Menu -> Settings -> Alpha Features.

The primary goal of this first iteration is to get feedback of device support, and I wish to limit it to this. For those who wish to join me in this development journey with regards to suggestions and feedback are welcome to join the official #vr-development channel found under the Alpha section on our Discord server,

With this first implementation you will be able to start a mission in the Mercury Program. I have implemented a very simple interaction model for now where you can use the controllers to control a laser pointer (on the right controller) that should be able to interact with all switches onboard. Using the A and B button, you can move switches and selectors to configure the panels.

For those familiar with VR development, the current implementation will try to initially only use the new OpenXR API built into Unity, with the VR Interaction Framework as its core.

Once I start to get feedback on device support, I will iterate on this implementation to add support for the mission pad so you can interact with to execute checklists and so on, and then move into a more sophisticated interaction model where you can use the controllers directly on switches instead of using a laser pointer. When this is done, you will have basic VR support that will let you complete any mission in Project Mercury!

If you wish to test this, enable VR from the alpha feature to toggle the VR section in Settings. From here, you can enable VR. The moon landscape will then render in the VR headset. The Main Menu will render on your monitor and you will need to configure settings and select missions from here. Once you start a mission, the game will start to render Mercury in the HMD.

I want to take this opportunity to thank you all for the suggestions and feedback during the old technical preview phase of VR, I learned a lot from this, and I'm very excited to start this new phase of VR support in Reentry.

A big shoutout to all the Test Pilots, the Community and those who help new players there, and for helping me shape this game into what it is today.

0.998 release notes:

Blocking issues fixed: Unable to launch the Gemini Campaing Mission 1
Fixes to blocking MOCR session logic bugs
Many fixes to the new Career path/tech tree feature
Updates to save states
Multiple fixes on mission scripts and typos
Multiple fixes on checklists and the checklist guidance system
Starting the new Mercury VR implementation
Fixed: Gemini Lock On light can occasionally get stuck in the lock on state.
Fixed: Gemini Encoder stopped working when docked
Corrected UI scaling issues related to the Mercury Failure Toggle window
Corrected km to nmi conversion in TEI academy lesson
Mercury and Gemini ascent guidance updates
Fixed: In the Apollo academy mission #10 Transposition and Docking, RCS thrusters A1, C1, and A2 are turned off at the beginning of the mission and there is no prompt to turn them on. They are needed to complete the docking.